Welcome Back
by secretangel106
Summary: A one-shot reunion that takes place immediately after "Return of an Old Friend"; centers on the conversation between Tommy and Kimberly that addresses the 'elephant in the room' after Tommy's powers are restored.


_Greetings, readers! I'm back after a long hiatus, and I had a few days to myself, so I thought I'd put this scenario down on paper - I've thought about this 'missing moment' many times over the years. Right now it's a one-shot, focusing on the reunion of our favorite couple after Tommy comes back as the green ranger in Return of an Old Friend. However, I'd like to eventually write a similar story about Tommy returning (again) as the white ranger. Let me know what you think!_

 _Normally I like to write T/K a little more fun & flirty, but since this takes place within the continuity of the original storyline, I tried to stay true to character. Very dialogue heavy._

 _One more thing... I know many of you are anxiously awaiting conclusions to my other stories. I chose NOT to focus on those because I had a pretty limited timeframe, and I didn't want to tease you by adding one chapter and then still not concluding the story! A one-shot like this was what I had time for. Life has gotten busy, but I'll start chipping away! Thanks for reading, and please review!_

* * *

Kimberly shifted against the rough bark of the tree and sighed as she picked at a spot of frosting on her shirt. Despite her quick reflexes, she hadn't quite managed to escape the Youth Center before a massive food fight took place, initiated by parents of her classmates.

"What a day," she said to no one in particular as she continued to scrutinize her blouse. In all truth, she shouldn't have been wearing this outfit today anyway. She had chosen a paisley top and pink jeans as a perfect, "prized daughter" outfit for Parents Day. It was not, however, the outfit she would have chosen had she known she'd be seeing HIM today. The "run-into-the-guy-you're-massively-crushing-on-and-haven't-seen-in-a-month" outfit would have been much, MUCH different.

"Not that it matters," she muttered to herself in a hushed tone as she threw her hands down in her lap and turned her eyes up to the sky. Brilliant streaks of pink and purple crossed it haphazardly, ushering in nightfall. Soon people all over Angel Grove would be heading to bed, tucking in their children and preparing for another normal day – completely unaware that they had been _this_ close to being enslaved by evil space aliens while the Power Rangers stood by helplessly.

That's what would have happened, if it weren't for him.

It seemed so strange to her that everyone else was going on as though everything was ordinary while her whole world felt like it had shifted on its axis today. Her nerves were on high alert- she hadn't quite calmed down from the events of the afternoon – and as her eyes shifted, she spotted a dark figure watching her from across the park. Ranger instincts kicked in and she sprung to her feet, but as she did, the figure began to approach.

She instantly relaxed. Even without seeing his face, she'd studied him long enough to know his calm, confident walk anywhere.

"Hey," Tommy offered quietly as he approached.

"Hi," she responded, stepping forward to meet him. After a brief pause, she added, "How are you holding up?"

His bright grin pierced the darkness. "I feel amazing!" Then the corners of his mouth fell a bit and his forehead wrinkled in concern. "But it's been a crazy day, and all I've really wanted to do was talk to you."

A surge of warmth filled her chest, and she bowed her head to hide her smile. "What did you want to talk about?"

He sighed and reached for her hand, tugging her in his direction and backing up to a nearby bench. "Well," he said as they sat, "I honestly hadn't thought that far. I just knew I wanted to talk to you." He favored her with one of his charming smiles, masking his concern. "But I've been watching you for a few minutes, and it seems like you might have some things you'd like to talk about."

A small giggle escaped her, impressed by his intuitiveness. "Yeah, I guess…" Her eyes met his and her angst began to fade. "I just want to know where we stand. Especially if we're going to be on a team together."

His brow wrinkled again in genuine confusion. "What do you mean?"

She shifted uncomfortably and diverted her eyes. "Well… you kissed me."

He grinned. "I remember."

"And then we went to the dance, and I thought we had a great time." Her mind flashed back to that fairy tale evening. She remembered him standing in her living room decked out in a suit, a bright smile spread ear to ear. She spent the whole night wrapped in his arms, listening to his voice rumble through his chest and memorizing the muscular lines of his upper body. He barely left her side, and he never lost that smile she loved. And then, when he drove her home…

"We did have a great time," he affirmed, squeezing her hand.

"And then you kissed me again."

"I kissed you a lot," he said, thinking back to the feeling of her soft lips on his, first gently in the front seat of his car and then more urgently standing on her front porch, arms wrapped around her tightly, her warm breath fanning lightly over his lips and neck.

"Yeah…" she responded quietly, thankful for the cover of darkness to hide her blush. "And then you disappeared."

His smile faded into shame and he swung his eyes downward. "I did."

"Why?"

He did not speak; instead maintaining a contemplative silence.

"I know losing your powers was hard on you," she offered after a moment. "But I could have been there for you."

"It was hard. But not nearly as hard as losing you would have been."

"What?!" she replied sharply. "I just said…"

"I know what you said. And I know that I didn't really lose you – any of you."

"But then – "

He sighed again and squeezed her fingertips. "Okay, so… I… I don't date pretty girls."

"What?!" she repeated, louder than before. "I'm not sure how to take that."

"Oh, Kim, I… That came out wrong," he stammered.

"I'd say," she said, an amused smile curving her lips.

"I mean," he continued, "the idea that a pretty girl would want to date me is pretty far-fetched."

"What are you talking about?"

He favored her with an apologetic smile. "You were too good to be true."

She shook her head fervently. "That's ridiculous. I've been flirting shamelessly with you since I first laid eyes on you."

He laughed. "Yeah, and I enjoyed every minute of it. But…"

"But what?"

He sighed. "After that dance, though, I spiraled downward pretty quickly. And in my defense, losing powers is a pretty intense experience. Like hormones, but worse. So, I figured there must be a reason you agreed to go with me."

"You mean, other than wanting – and wanting _desperately_ – to go with you?"

 _Did the word 'desperately' just come out of my mouth? Get it together!_ Kim screamed at herself mentally.

"Well," he smiled, "I don't know that I knew that. But here's what I did know – we were close, and we flirted a lot."

"No argument here."

"But I started to worry that maybe the 'me' you were attracted to was enhanced by being the green ranger. And then…" he paused, rubbing his eyes with the heels of his hands. "Then I started to think, maybe…"

"Yes?" she prompted, torn between feeling irritated and empathetic.

"Maybe it was a pity date."

The silence hung heavy between them, electrified by his confession and her shock. After what seemed like an eternity, Tommy took a deep breath and spoke again. "I thought you felt bad for me – "

"Yes, I know what you mean by 'pity date'," she snapped.

He grimaced, knowing he deserved her tone. "I just… I couldn't handle coming back and seeing you again if that were the case. I didn't want my memory of that night to be tainted by your rejection, and I thought…"

"You thought if you avoided me I couldn't reject you."

"Right."

"Because I'm shallow and probably only liked you because you were a power ranger, and then I felt bad for you, so I thought, 'What the hell? I'll make out with anybody.'" She could feel the tips of her ears turning red.

He took a deep breath and squeezed his eyes shut. "No," he said authoritatively. "I didn't think any of those things about you."

"But YOU just said…"

"No," he repeated emphatically as he grabbed her shoulders and swiveled her toward him. He looked her square in the eye with the confidence she was used to seeing on the battlefield. "I didn't think one negative thing about you. Not one. Ever." His gaze turned more gentle, and he reached for her hand. "I had just taken too many hits, and I couldn't bear the thought of seeing that look on your beautiful face."

"What 'look'?" she said, still feeling uneasy but allowing him to entwine his fingers with hers.

He laughed. "I'm not even sure. Just… The look that would say you didn't want anything to do with me anymore."

"Hmm…" she mused, leaning against the back of the bench. "Is that the look I have right now?"

"God, I hope not," he muttered, studying her closely.

"Well," she started, trying to maintain her façade for at least another minute or two, "let me ask you this." She leaned into him and curled her fingers around his. "As I said earlier…. As I've said many, _many_ times, I've been into you since the minute I laid eyes on you." The twinkle in her eye was dangerous, and the corner of her mouth curved upward flirtatiously. "Do you know when that was?"

"Hmph," he scoffed. "Uh, was it the first time I tried to kill you?"

She laughed. "Is it bad that that's funny to me?" He shook his head, also trying to hold back a laugh.

Then her tone turned serious. "No. That wasn't it. I was at the karate tournament where you and Jason first met. And I told Trini, right then and there, that I wanted you. She had to come back and grab me because I was busy checking you out and didn't follow her as she walked away."

He grinned and looked down at their joined hands. "I didn't know that. I thought it was maybe when I rescued you from Bulk and Skull at your locker."

"Surprised you missed me. I was decked out in pink, head to toe, hat and all. Maybe you just didn't notice."

"Oh, if I would have seen you, trust me… I would have noticed."

"But anyway, my point is, all of that happened BEFORE anything ranger-related. I was – I _am_ into you because you're sexy as hell, and interesting, and you make me feel safe like no one else ever has. And you being a ranger has nothing to do with any of that."

Her expression lightened as his turned more serious, and she continued. "And one more thing… Remember, I came to find you at the lake that day. I _knew_ you had been trying to ask me to that dance – I was SO pissed when the putties interrupted us – and I wanted so badly for you to finish, for you to ask me _that_ question."

"Seeing you that day was… Well, let's just say I don't think I've ever gone from being so low to so high in one day."

Kim contemplated asking him if he was referring to his emotional state or his anatomy, but decided against it. Instead, she thought she'd pull the focus back to the conflict at hand. "Here's the thing, though, Tommy. You dodged me so you wouldn't get hurt, but in doing so, you hurt me. You left _me_ feeling rejected, and the worst part is, I didn't even know why. I thought we were at the beginning of something great!"

She turned to him, noticing the wet look in his eyes. "And then you showed back up today, and I was so excited to see you." She felt her own tears threatening to spill. "But the whole time, at the back of my mind I was thinking, 'Why am I excited? Does he even want to see me?'"

He said nothing for a long while, only reached for her and pulled her close against his chest. He took several deep breaths before speaking again, in an attempt to calm his emotions. "God, Kim… I'm sorry."

He felt her nod, but she remained quiet, so he continued. "That night of the dance, when you came downstairs in that dress?" He nuzzled his face in the top of her head and whispered, "I think my heart stopped when I saw you." He couldn't see her face, but he could sense her smile. "You were _so_ beautiful, and I thought I was the luckiest guy on earth to have you on my arm."

She made a noise that sounded like a scoff. "Did you still feel that same way at the end of the night? I wouldn't let you get off that dance floor."

He laughed quietly, thankful for the lightened mood. "I loved every second I was holding you. I mean, I'm a terrible dancer – "

This earned a full out laugh from Kim. "Yes, you absolutely are. We'll have to work on that."

Her reference to the future inflated him with hope, and he squeezed her tighter. "I felt that same way today, when I dropped into that command center and saw you standing there."

"Do you feel that same way now?" she asked facetiously, thinking about her tear-streaked face and sloppy clothes.

"Well, I would, but I'm pretty sure there's vegetable dip right here," he mused, picking at a strand of her hair. She cracked up, her laughter filling him with warmth.

"Kim, I never meant to hurt you. I really mean that."

She sat up, leaving his arm draped across her shoulder. "I know."

"That doesn't change the fact that I _did_ hurt you, though."

"No, it doesn't." She leaned in close, her face a breath away from his. "You'll just have to make it up to me now."

He closed the gap swiftly, capturing her lips with his. She pressed back against him with ferocity, her fingertips finding their way to his face as his mouth plundered hers. Her tongue swept out across his lower lip and he responded with a groan and wrapped his arm tighter around her waist.

She pulled back, sweet breath fanning over his face and her lips curved back into a grin. "Welcome back, Tommy."

"Great to be back," he whispered. "Are we still at the beginning of something great?"

She slinked off the bench, stood up in front of him and extended her hand. "Walk me home and we'll find out."

"Gladly," he smiled, taking her hand.


End file.
